Bushiden - A Futuristic, Ninja Action Platformer

Explore for cybernetic upgrades until you are powerful enough to defeat the diabolic Gaoh and his cybergenetic army once and for all!

Watch the trailer in HD:

Bushiden is a Metroidvania-influenced action platformer set in a futuristic world where your greatest foe has been revived from the dead and is seeking revenge. The game combines melee combat with exploration elements spanning 8 separate, non-linear levels.

Story

Assume the role of Reylee, the last member of the ancient Iga-Ryu Clan, as you set out to save your sister and defeat the diabolical Gaoh and his cybergenetic army once and for all!

Bushiden will initially release on Steam (Windows) and PlayStation 4. We want to bring Bushiden to as many platforms as possible and our goal is to release on additional platforms after launch!

Bushiden opens with a prologue level that culminates in the battle that took place between Reylee and Gaoh six years prior to the events of the game. Upon completing the prologue, the narrative moves to the present and the player is able to select any one of six available levels to enter. Completing a level by defeating the boss grants Reylee a new ability. Levels can be exited before completion at Save Terminals and they can be revisited, even after completion, to utilize Reylee's upgraded abilities while exploring for secrets. Completing all six of the available levels unlocks the final level, Gaoh's Tower, and puts Reylee on a collision course with the final showdown between him and Gaoh!

Roukyuu Factory

Roukyuu Factory (prologue) - The backdrop for the battle between Reylee and Gaoh six years prior to the events of the game.

Shinsei Forest

Shinsei Forest - Animals are fleeing the forest and whispers of unsettling activity are circulating. It would seem something sinister is at work.

Himitsu Lab

Himitsu Lab - Gaoh and his forces have overtaken this secret lab. Could they be attempting to engineer new, biological weapons infused with the dark powers of the underworld?

Enkaku Desert

Enkaku Desert - Satellites show heavy activity in this region. It appears Gaoh's forces are constructing a new facility. What could it be for?

Kyuubou City

Kyuubou City - The city has gone empty and the citizens are nowhere to be found. Rumor has it that they have been rounded up by Gaoh's minions for use in experiments.

Kichou Caverns

Kichou Caverns - The caverns are overrun with dark forces. They seem to be stripping the caverns of their precious gems to fund the production of their cybergenetic army.

Haikyo Sewers

Haikyo Sewers - Seismic scans indicate an unusual amount of activity deep within the abandoned sewers. Why would there be activity now and what is causing it?

Gaoh's Tower

Gaoh's Tower - The setting for the final showdown between Reylee and Gaoh. Reaching Gaoh will not be easy, so be sure to be prepared!

Segmenting Bushiden's world into separate levels allows us to offer the player a choice regarding what type of experience they want. The game can be completed without revisiting any levels for those who enjoy a more linear, arcade action experience. Of course, the game also offers many secrets to discover and rewards to be unlocked for those who enjoy a healthy dose of exploration in their games. Our goal is for the game to provide 6-12 hours of entertainment depending on how much exploration the player chooses to do.

Combat in Bushiden uses what we are calling our "crowd control" combat system. We want the player to feel empowered, jumping right into the middle of crowds of enemies and swiftly defeating them--like you would envision a ninja doing!

The combat system is based around the traditional three-hit combo--a quick succession of attacks that, if successfully executed, leaves the enemy stunned until it's complete. We have built three different options into the three-hit combo to empower the player:

Area Attack Finishers

Attack Area Finisher - By pressing a direction along with the attack button during the third hit of the combo you can perform an attack that targets specific areas around Reylee. You can strike in front of you, above you, or even behind you--pick the best type of attack for your current circumstance!

Combo Cancel - Cancel your combo by rolling out of it at any point. The initial few frames of the roll act as a dodging mechanism making Reylee invincible for a brief period of time.

Our goal is for the combat in Bushiden to be accessible while still offering the player interesting, strategic choices to make while engaging enemies. The above three combo options are all achieved using simple inputs which can be easily remembered and performed in a split second during the heat of the battle. We are tuning our enemies' AI to operate within the context of this combat system, so the player will need to utilize it often and effectively!

Chi Spell Attack - Fire

Chi Spell Attacks - Chi Spell Attacks are one-time use consumables that allow Reylee to channel the energy of the elements and unleash devastating elemental attacks on enemies. Some Chi Spell Attacks can be purchased from the shop while others will have to be discovered while exploring the world.

Defeating the boss to clear a level will grant Reylee a new ability. There are a total of six new abilities to be unlocked in the game. Some impact combat, others impact traversal, and some impact both! New abilities will often allow Reylee to access areas of each level that he was previously unable to reach!

Shuriken Tech - Electricity

Shuriken Tech - Shuriken Tech allows Reylee to infuse his shurikens with special properties such as electricity to shock/stun enemies or explosive elements to cause increased damage!

Dash

Dash - The Dash ability replaces Reylee's dodge/roll. It grants a longer invincibility distance, can be performed in the air, or used as a powerful combo attack finisher!

Phase Shift - Reylee will come across areas that are lined with electric currents. Phase Shifting allows him to set himself to the correct phase and pass through the currents unharmed!

Gravity Switch

Gravity Switch - Some areas in the world of Bushiden are lined with gravity modulators. Reylee will be able to reverse gravity at will in these areas once he has obtained the Gravity Switch ability!

Reylee's final ability can be decided by you!

The final, unlockable ability can be determined by one of our generous backers who will get to work with us to design it! These abilities greatly impact the nature of the game, so this is an opportunity for one of you to play a MAJOR role in the game Bushiden becomes!

Enemies will randomly drop in-game currency when defeated. This currency can be used to purchase upgrades and consumables from the shop. Some items, such as additional Summons Tech, can only be purchased once the player has unlocked the necessary upgrade by completing a level. The following items will be available for purchase in the shop:

Health Refills (consumable)

Health Upgrades

Summons Tech

Shuriken Tech

Chi Spell Attacks (consumable)

Bushiden's entire soundtrack is being composed by Michael "Garoad" Kelly of VA-11 HALL-A fame. Michael is creating something very special with this OST and we are thrilled to have him on board! Below are a few work-in-progress snippets of compositions from the soundtrack:

Michael on his process for creating the soundtrack for Bushiden:

"Approaching the music for Bushiden, I first think about the world of the game and what that sounds like. From there, I think about each level and the lore behind it--what story does this location have to tell? Most of all, I want the player to feel a sense of heroism (Which really means I want them to feel cool and like a badass) while playing. Each stage will have two songs (or acts) that share a motif. These won't just be remixes but rather very different tracks that convey a theme of that location. For the second tracks in each location, I look to explore what perseverance sounds like--something that says 'It's been hard, but you've made it this far. Keep going and don't give up now!' Something that could serve as a nice little adrenaline boost."

Tim Jonsson (Artist & Animator) - Tim has worked as a freelance pixel artist and animator for 6 years. He has contributed art to games such as Katana Zero, Freedom Planet 2, and Paprium. Working on Bushiden, his goal is to deliver pixel art that truly equals some of the top 2D games from the mid to late 90's.

Chris Crawford (Developer) - Chris has worked as a Software Engineer for the last 10 years building web-based business applications. His experience allows him to bring solid software development methodology and project management skills to the fold. Bushiden is the game Chris has always wanted to make and he is super excited to be bringing it to life.

Michael "Garoad" Kelly @garoadmusic (Composer) - Michael is well known for his work on the soundtrack to Sukeban Games’ cyberpunk bartender game VA-11 HALL-A. For Bushiden, Michael is continuing to deliver his trademark sound combined with a more driving, adrenaline-inducing attitude worthy of an action game.

We have been developing Bushiden for a year at this point. Our focus has been on developing our engine and tools, implementing player movement systems, and fleshing out the game's core combat system. We have accomplished a lot over the past year without encountering any major hurdles or issues.

So... what's left to do? The biggest task is the game's boss fights. We plan to end each level with epic, over-the-top boss encounters! While the boss fights are super important to the game (and us!) we felt it was best to flesh out the core mechanics of the game and combat before we tackled these. This way we can make sure they are designed properly and make use of the core gameplay systems and mechanics.

We also need to create new assets for the levels. Our goal is for each area to offer a significant amount of variety visually and interactively.

Sound design is another major component of the game that will be focused on a lot before release. There is much to be done in this area and we are very excited about bringing this world to life with audio!

Additional enemies need to be created and implemented. We want to give each level its own distinct personality and one of the ways we will be achieving this is by having enemies that are unique to specific levels. These enemies will not only be unique visually--they will also have unique AI and attack patterns. We want to make sure combat remains fresh throughout the game!

Lastly, we will be refining everything! Existing art, animations, enemy AI, level layouts, etc... We are firm believers in iteration. Bushiden will be played a LOT, over and over again, by our testers. We will use their feedback, in addition to feedback from our Beta Backers, to tweak level layouts and encounter design until Bushiden is as good as it can possibly be!

Below is a breakdown of our budget. As you can see, most of the money will go towards continuing the wonderful pixel art and animation that has been incorporated into the game thus far. The remaining funds will be divided up between Development, Music, and Sound costs after Kickstarter Fees are subtracted and Legal Fees are paid.

Bushiden has been completely self-funded in order to get us to this point. We have poured tens of thousands of dollars of our own money and countless hours into developing the game. We are at a point where we know we have something special, but we need your help in order to finish it! We simply cannot fund the entire game by ourselves and have it release any time in the near future.

More importantly, launching the game through Kickstarter helps us to create a community around the game and its development. Your excitement motivates us even further and your feedback will help to make the game even more amazing! We are excited to develop the game in tandem with the community and will be listening closely to all of your input. We will post monthly updates to Kickstarter and every backer's feedback will be seriously taken into consideration by the team.